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A West Pittston man whom federal authorities say is the leader of a local chapter of the Aryan Brotherhood and his fiancée will remain in jail on charges of conspiring to build a large scale synthetic drug enterprise to sell a powerful, mind-altering substance throughout Luzerne County.

Todd Morgans, 34, who federal authorities said used his West Pittston home to store and sell the synthetic drug, alpha-PVP, for the white supremacist group, appeared in federal court in Scranton on Friday for a detention hearing.

After a deputy U.S. marshal removed his shackles, Morgans quietly conferred with his court-appointed attorney, Patrick M. Rogan, and decided to waive his right to a hearing.

Morgans will remain detained at the Lackawanna County Prison pending the outcome of his case.

Rogan reserved the right to request another hearing. There is no bail in federal court system.

The proceeding lasted mere minutes, in contrast to the detention hearing for his fiancée, Christine Policare, 20, before U.S. District Judge Malachy E. Mannion.

A federal grand jury indicted the couple on Tuesday on charges of possessing and trafficking at least 7,000 grams of alpha-PVP, which has chemical properties similar to another designer drug commonly known as bath salts.

The day after the grand jury handed up the indictment, investigators raided Morgans' 217 Liberty St. home, where Policare also lives.

They seized an estimated 2,000 grams of the synthetic drug, a stash of guns and ammo and roughly $40,000 in cash. During the raid, they encountered fortified doors and counter-surveillance equipment, which authorities believe was installed to help them evade law enforcement.

They also found white supremacist literature and paraphernalia scattered throughout the home, which police said served as a meeting place for an Aryan Brotherhood chapter.

Investigators are exploring the link between the couple's synthetic drug enterprise and the Aryan Brotherhood. They are also attempting to trace the source of the drug, which appears to have arrived in the U.S. from somewhere in Asia.

On Friday, two deputy U.S. marshals escorted a shackled Policare into the courtroom for her detention hearing minutes after her fiancé appeared before the judge.

Her public defender, Leo Latella, argued for her release from the county jail. He requested that she be placed under the care of her mother and put on electronic monitoring. Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy C. Phillips asked the judge to deny his request.

Policare carried out a large majority of the drug deals, Phillips said, adding that "the evidence is overwhelming."

Her public defender said Policare was not the leader of the enterprise, just "simply someone who was a hand-to-hand dealer. Simply taking orders." Mannion denied the request and ordered her to stay jailed pending the outcome of her case. She posed a threat to the community, the judge said, in part because authorities found guns and the white supremacist literature in the couple's home.

Jury selection and trial are scheduled for Sept. 9. If convicted, they face up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

smcconnell@timesshamrock.com

@smconnellTT

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